FAM downplays Flames loss to South Sudan

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has downplayed Malawi national football team’s 2-0 loss to South Sudan in the last of their Group match of the East and Central Africa Senior Challenge Cup (Cecafa) in Ethiopia.

Mtawali: Experimented new players

Malawi, featuring as guests, took the competition by storm by beating Sudan 2-1 following it up with a convincing 3-0 beating of Djibouti in the second group game.

The Flames dented their clean run with a 2-0 loss to South Sudan on Friday but Football Association of Malawi downplayed the result saying the coach used fringe players.

FAM General Secretary Suzgo Nyirenda said he was not worried with the loss after coach Ernest Mtawali reshuffled the first choice team to give a chance to other squad players.

“We understand that the coach was experimenting with new players so we cannot be worried,” Nyirenda said.

“Of course we would have loved to win all group games but considering that he used seven of the players who are not first choice players we cannot be worried. He gave a chance to those who have never had a chance to play.”

He said Mtawali was buoyed by the fact the team had already qualified for the quarterfinals of the Cecafa tournament being played in Ethiopia.

We have to be careful. Featuring a weaker side may be viewed as much fixing? This is done in Europe to lesser competition i.e ManU playing against Derby Country in Capital One Cup. Not ManU playing against an EPL team in EPL. The balls of the Coach might be squeezed if he is not careful…ope match fixing here.

U cant speak for the coach with that kind of lame excuse. This is a battle to be the best in this tournament and you play smart to win your group to creat high probables for winning the next two games. And that is how my team won in 1988 because we had the smart coach in Reauben Malola who played with the high probable numbers right.

This is war. There is nothing like experiment here. You went there to play and bring good results. A loss is a loss even you used new players. Masewera sitimasewera pa ulimbo. Wake up and fight hard in the quarter finals.